Match Recap

Kris Boyd scored to earn Kilmarnock's second win of the season against the Ibrox side. Boyd's second-half goal - was his 15th in the league - condemning Rangers to their seventh defeat from 16 home league games.

Russell Martin came closest to equalising for the home side but hit the bar with a header from inside the area. The win moved Kilmarnock to within six points of fourth-placed Hibernian.

Comments

Steve Clarke: "When you consider the schedule we’ve had recently with seven games in 21 days it is a big ask for the players and I think you saw a little bit of fatigue in the first 20 minutes. The last 15 minutes we were digging in but I haven’t got words that can praise this group of players enough. They've found a way to get results, the run of matches and wins we’re on and the way we compete with the top teams must be great for the Kilmarnock supporters to come and watch. I know as a coach standing on the sideline that I’m really proud of the players. They should be proud of their efforts as well. We rode our luck a little bit with the one off the bar and I turned to Alex Dyer when that happened and said ‘you know what, it might be our day today. It’s always good when you get those little breaks but the players worked hard to get them. Every game you have to analyse and I felt today was a game for two strikers (Brophy & Boyd) whereas the midweek cup tie against Aberdeen I felt was for one striker. Every game is different and you have to read the game and try and find a way to give your players the best chance to win.

With Kris Boyd and Eamonn Brophy up front I knew we’d cause Rangers some problems and that proved to be the case, which is good for me and even better for the players. I don’t take any credit, I give credit to the people I work with. My staff are excellent, the players have been magnificent and the crowd have been great as well. There may not have been so many of them here but you could hear them screaming in the background and getting excited and trust me when your two brothers are Kilmarnock fans you know how excited they are getting at the moment. It’s good to see and it’s a good time for the club."

Kris Boyd: “I’m not one for celebrating – unless it’s at Aberdeen. For me, I have a good bond with the fans here. If it had been anybody else that scored, we’d have been just as happy. The most important thing is we came, we got three points, we are still on track for where we want to get to.”

“It’s a few years since I’ve scored 20 goals. In fact the last time I’d done it was when I was at Kilmarnock the last time. I’ve said it all along I’ll get myself in positions to score. But without my team-mates I would not have been able to do it. They’ve been excellent, the back four, the midfield two, the keeper. They have probably not had the credit they’ve deserved the last few months, like the forward players Eamonn Brophy, Jordan Jones, Lee Erwin, Rory McKenzie. With me playing as the No 9 the way I do, with the legs I’ve got around me, I know if I get myself in the box the chances will come with the quality we have. It’s a tap-in, but I’ll take 20 of them all season.”

"It’s not a fluke, the run we’re on. It would have been easy for us to let our heads drop after going out of the Scottish Cup on Tuesday night. But we now have real belief in the team. The top six is more or less done now, but we’re trying to push for fifth or fourth. We want to close that gap and push on. But we’re enjoying this run and playing good football. When you come to places like Ibrox, you really need to work hard and hope for some breaks. But in this game we did better than that and played some great stuff. Apart from the first ten minutes I felt we controlled the game.
On the Killie supporters: “They’ve supported us brilliantly in the last couple of months. I’ve been fed up over the last couple of years begging fans to come back because, when the product is rubbish, why would you? Now, though, they have a genuine belief that we are a team going places. We’re all playing with a smile on our faces, with a belief. It’s a credit to the manager and players, but the club wouldn’t be the same without the fans. We want to cement our top-six place next season and for the years to come.”